Noah Woods died after leaving play area through gap in fence, inquest told

Three-year-old Noah Woods, who was found dead in a lake following a huge search in Suffolk, had left a play area “through a gap in the fence”, an inquest in Ipswich heard.

A desperate search was launched on 15 September for Noah, who police said was non-verbal, partially deaf and undergoing an assessment for autism. The three-year-old went missing in Brantham, Suffolk when separated from a relative near a playground.

More than 24 hours after his disappearance, police confirmed that dive teams had recovered a child’s body from a lake known locally as Decoy Pond, which was later identified as the three-year-old boy.

The inquest for the three-year-old was formally launched on Friday morning at Suffolk Coroner’s Court in Ipswich.

Around 1,300 volunteers turned out to help find Noah, and search efforts were supported by the National Police Air Service, HM Coastguard, Suffolk Fire & Rescue Service, and Suffolk Lowland Search & Rescue.

Suffolk Police confirmed that the body of a child had been found and the discovery was being treated as unexplained but not suspicious.

Noah’s father paid tribute to the three-year-old in the days following his death, calling him “the sweetest and most innocent little boy” in a post on social media.

“As I’m sure you have all seen, the body that was found in Decoy Pond is our little Noah,” he said. “There are no words to describe the pain of this loss, we are all absolutely heartbroken, Noah was the sweetest and most innocent little boy, with nothing but love to give, and we are going to miss him so very much.”

He added: “It seems he has made an impact across the whole nation, you have all taken Noah into you’re own hearts, with all the overwhelming help, we were all just trying to bring him home to us safe and sound.”

Noah’s father thanked volunteers and authorities for their compassion during “the darkest time of our lives.”

“The compassion shown by all of you will never be forgotten by us, and brought us comfort and strength at the darkest time of our lives,” he said. “This was the most heartbreaking outcome for us, we were just hoping that he would be hiding somewhere obvious where someone could find him, that’s what we kept telling ourselves the whole time.

“Noah, you will be loved forever, you will never be forgotten and we miss you so so much, it has been a privilege to be your parents and be able to have packed so much love in the short 3 years you were with us.”

A tribute to the three-year-old was also shown on the big screen ahead of the Everton v Ipswich Town Premier League match, while players wore black armbands in his memory. More than £100,000 has been raised to support Noah’s family.